No More Whiffenpoofs At Yale? Nah, Nah, Nah

October 18, 1997|By BILL KEVENEY; Courant Staff Writeri

The letterhead was authentic down to the blue lettering, the press release detailed and well-written. It sure seemed as if Yale's Office of Public Affairs were announcing the demise of the oldest and most famous campus a cappella singing group, The Whiffenpoofs.

But not so fast. The ``poor little lambs'' made famous decades ago in ``The Whiffenpoof Song'' aren't going anywhere. The breakup announcement, sent to various media including The Courant, was a fake.

``We did confirm it was a hoax and we have no idea who started it,'' said Cynthia Atwood, who really does work for the university's public affairs office.

No news organizations appear to have fallen for the fake release, dated Oct. 15. Yale public affairs officers said they were not bothered by the incident. Andy Owens, the pitch pipe, or musical director, for this year's version of the fabled all-male singing group, said The Whiffenpoofs are alive and well. ``I'm not surprised or upset about it,'' Owens said.

The fake press release was printed on what seems to be real Yale public relations stationery. The release, which appeared a bit too rich with Whiffenpoof criticism to be a press release, stated that the all-senior singing group was disbanding because of controversy over its annual ``tap,'' or selection process for new members. It also mentioned the group's resistance to calls to open it to female singers.

Owens and others, including a Yale Daily News editor, speculated that a semi-secret campus group known as The Pundits may have been responsible for the prank. However, there is no proof that the group was involved and a member of the Pundits could not be reached for comment.